Help Needed on Cursed Mask

[Techmagss]

PLEASE THOSE IN THE SIMPLE 3.5 GAME DON'T READ
GO
NOW




If you're still here, hello
I'm looking for any help on a cursed mask. The party may or may not use it, but I'm wondering what to do if one of them puts it on.
Not death by axpyhxisation or whatever, please. That's a bit unoriginal.
Here's my description of it. I would like it to give a few benefits.

You hold the mask in your hand. It is of a dark greenish hue, with two goggles. It has a few slits in the mouthpiece, you assume this is for breathing (exclusion: if they have under 10 intelligence). It has some strange writing carved on the forehead in gold.

Now any suggestions on what to do with it? Benefits, curses, etc.

[Arcanist]

Make the mask stick to the person and turn them into another creature while the wearer is in a society surrounded by people who want to exterminate that species... Like Goblins or Orcs or something... Good sir, your avatar is Raiden as a pony :smallconfused:

EDIT: Or better yet, make it so that the people around that person want to attack them simply for their species or whatever.

[Techmagss]

I don't want it to be too obvious
Perhaps benefits for the first 24 hours then...
Hueuhuueheueu
Sticks to the person and then benefits start fading til either the most useful or useless one is left.
Other curses?

[CaladanMoonblad]

The other day one of my players brought the core rulebook to Ravenloft for 3rd (the Sword and Sorcery imprint) edition in for me to peruse (he had found it at a used bookstore). There's a wonderfully written session on curses (the oral kind) and the text suggests that for Powers checks (ie, gaining the notice of the Dark Powers) and traveling the road to corruption, that it is essentially a carrot-stick approach.

This mask has goggles. There should be some visual benefit. I would suggest the ability to see into the Near Ethereal (ie, ghosts and such). You can even create a "random ghost index card" deck in case they want to see if any ghosties are wandering around at any time. Choose 3-5 cards in an urban setting, and 1 card in a rural setting. Like 50% of the ghosts should be commoners going about their business of washing, cleaning, working, etc. This will even allow the heroes to interact with ghosts if they can get its attention (such as with a magical effect). Perhaps if the heroes have lots of gear, they already have a ghostly following 'getting warm off their gear.'

What's the downside? Well, realizing that ghosts are all around, all the time. Another downside could be a slow charisma drain. Make sure to have it accrue at the end of the day, so the heroes don't associate it with the mask. Every time that the mask is used to "see" drains the user of 1 point of charisma to power the device.

Another effect should be that ghosts in the near ethereal can now physically interact with the mask user once the user gets their attention. So you can have ghosts of their foes stalking the hero and beating them up (and possibly killing them).

In other words, you don't get something for nothing. There's a price to pay for such a cursed item. This will make the item still worthwhile but also dangerous. If the cursed item was all bad, someone would have thrown it down a well a long time ago.

[Deophaun]

After donning the mask, you become Jim Carrey.

Mask of Envy:
-Continuous detect magic and treasure scent (SpC)
-2/day locate object

24 hours after donning the mask, the character must succeed on a DC (Whatever) Will save or be affected as if by a miser's envy spell (Draconomicon), except the duration is 24 hours. The object of the miser's envy spell is the first magic item the character sees in possession of another. Only spells that can remove a bestow curse work to remove the miser's envy effect.

No character can be affected by the mask more than once in a 24 hour period.

[Techmagss]

And the breathers? I didnt put those slits in it for nothing

[Deophaun]

And the breathers?
I said treasure scent. :smallbiggrin:

[Qwertystop]

The other day one of my players brought the core rulebook to Ravenloft for 3rd (the Sword and Sorcery imprint) edition in for me to peruse (he had found it at a used bookstore). There's a wonderfully written session on curses (the oral kind) and the text suggests that for Powers checks (ie, gaining the notice of the Dark Powers) and traveling the road to corruption, that it is essentially a carrot-stick approach.

This mask has goggles. There should be some visual benefit. I would suggest the ability to see into the Near Ethereal (ie, ghosts and such). You can even create a "random ghost index card" deck in case they want to see if any ghosties are wandering around at any time. Choose 3-5 cards in an urban setting, and 1 card in a rural setting. Like 50% of the ghosts should be commoners going about their business of washing, cleaning, working, etc. This will even allow the heroes to interact with ghosts if they can get its attention (such as with a magical effect). Perhaps if the heroes have lots of gear, they already have a ghostly following 'getting warm off their gear.'

What's the downside? Well, realizing that ghosts are all around, all the time. Another downside could be a slow charisma drain. Make sure to have it accrue at the end of the day, so the heroes don't associate it with the mask. Every time that the mask is used to "see" drains the user of 1 point of charisma to power the device.

Another effect should be that ghosts in the near ethereal can now physically interact with the mask user once the user gets their attention. So you can have ghosts of their foes stalking the hero and beating them up (and possibly killing them).

In other words, you don't get something for nothing. There's a price to pay for such a cursed item. This will make the item still worthwhile but also dangerous. If the cursed item was all bad, someone would have thrown it down a well a long time ago.
This one's really good. If the players are good at RP, I'd even drop the Charisma damage and just leave it at the ghosts being able to affect you and the can't-get-away-from-them.
(also the mask is stuck so you can't use a different mask)

And the breathers? I didnt put those slits in it for nothing

So you can breathe air instead of trying to inhale metal/wood/papier-mache. Just because they're there doesn't mean there has to be any magic effect.